Canadiens Pre Game

Canadiens Game 45: Line Shuffle After Call-Ups, Matheson In

Published

1 year ago

January 17, 2023

The Montreal Canadiens (18-23-3) prepare for the first of a five-game homestand against the surprising Winnipeg Jets (29-14-1) at the Bell Centre. The puck drop is scheduled for 7 PM ET.

The Canadiens’ recent stint in the Big Apple this weekend proved to be very costly, as they lost the services of Jake Evans, Joel Armia and Juraj Slafkovsky in the process.

After all these roster moves and some cap gymnastics, the Montreal Canadiens recalled Rem Pitlick and Rafaël Harvey-Pinard, the Laval Rocket’s two hottest forwards (along with Anthony Richard) for help.

They’ll be lining up on the fourth line tonight, possibly next to Jonathan Drouin.

Meanwhile, it seems like Jesse Ylönen may be getting the promotion to the top line to play with Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield. It’s a well-deserved promotion as the youngster has shown more in his last handful of games than many veterans so far this season.

https://montreal.nationalhockeynow.com/2023/01/11/montreal-canadiens-reasons-behind-canadiens-recall-of-jesse-ylonen/

In terms of good news, Mike Matheson skated on the third pair this morning next to Jonathan Kovacevic and could be in line for a return tonight. If not, his return is said to be imminent.

The Winnipeg Jets have been one of the more surprising teams in the NHL this season. After failing to get any of the big fish they wanted to add this summer, the Jets have seemingly banded together and pushed it up a level.

At the heart of this movement is the ever-popular Pierre-Luc Dubois who has taken his game to another level this season with the Jets, especially offensively. The St-Agathe-Des Monts native has been stellar for the Jets, potting 20 goals and 29 assists for 49 points so far this season and has been the offensive catalyst on the top line for the Jets.

Meanwhile, Josh Morrisey is also having a career year, logging eight goals and 40 assists for 48 points through just 44 games. On top of his offensive uptick, Morrissey continues to play stellar minutes for the Jets, an average of over 23 minutes a game to be exact.

Lastly, goaltender Connor Hellebuyck, who will be starting tonight, has been the backbone of this resurgence for the Jets. The likely Vezina Trophy candidate has been on a heater this season, posting a 0.926 save percentage and a 2.37 goals-against average, with three shutouts to his name.

The club is finally balanced from top to bottom and represents one of the top teams in the Western Conference so far this season.

The Canadiens are sure to have their hands full tonight.

Here’s what you need to know:

Montreal Canadiens Injuries

Kaiden Guhle (Injured Reserve)
Brendan Gallagher (Injured Reserve)
Joel Armia (Injured Reserve)
Jake Evans (Injured Reserve)
Juraj Slafkovsky (Injured Reserve)
Sean Monahan (LTIR)
Carey Price (LTIR)
Paul Byron (LTIR)

Winnipeg Jets Injuries

Mason Appleton (IR)
Logan Stanley (IR)
Ville Heinola (DTD)
David Gustafsson (DTD)

Montreal Canadiens Previous Lineup

LW	C	RW
Cole Caufield	Nick Suzuki	Juraj Slafkovsky
Brendan Gallagher	Alex Newhook	Joel Armia
Jesse Ylonen	Jake Evans	Josh Anderson
Michael Pezzetta	Christian Dvorak	Rafael Harvey-Pinard